The cost to the UK economy of dealing with dementia is £32 billion a year, according to a report.
Researchers at Oxford University carried out a study of 15 European countries and estimated that the collective cost of dealing with such conditions totalled £165 billion in 2007.
Of this, the care provided by family and friends accounted for the bulk of the cost at £112 billion.
The cost to healthcare systems made up only five per cent of the total, while loss of earnings and income was just one per cent.
In the latter case, the propensity for dementia sufferers to be older and past working age may limit this cost.
The UK cost of care was £13,200 a year per patient, a figure only Luxembourg and Sweden exceeded, with just under one million UK sufferers identified.
GPS tracking technology to establish the whereabouts of dementia sufferers at any time could help improve their quality of life, according to the Alzheimer's Society.
© Adfero Ltd
Dementia treatment news : 5 November 2011
